Hogwarts, where the stars shine

Chapter 9, departure



King's Cross Station is a large railway terminal opened in 1852. The station has many eastern and northern lines to England and Scotland, connecting many major cities.

There are rumors that King's Cross Station is haunted and that there are ghosts haunting the station.

This ghost is named Boudicca, the queen of the Iceni tribe and the last ruler of the Iceni royal family. She once led the British tribes to resist the occupying forces of the Roman Empire.

At ten o'clock in the morning, Mesa crossed the wide road and entered the station.After asking the staff about the location of the platform, Mesa, pushing a trolley, arrived between the ninth and tenth platforms.

According to Snape, Mesa needed to pass through the third pillar between the two platforms to see platform nine and three-quarters and see the express train leading to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

To this end, Mesa also asked Tom, the owner of the Leaky Cauldron, and got the same answer.

Old Tom also told him: King's Cross Station not only has platform nine and three-quarters, but also platform seven and one-half leading to Europe, as well as a hidden platform leading to Asia.

In addition, the station also has other hidden platforms that can be opened according to different needs.The famous witch singer Celestine Warbeck once held concerts on these hidden platforms.

There was still almost an hour before the departure, so Mesa was not in a hurry to enter the platform. He stood by the pillar of the ninth platform with interest and looked at the passing crowds.

That observation didn't matter, Mesa met a lot of "maverick" eccentrics.

Not only do they dress strangely and differ from ordinary passengers, but the pets they carry are also all kinds of strange, with owls and toads being the most normal pets among them.

From time to time, one or two words would drift into Mesa's ears, such as the large family that just passed by him.

It was a huge family, headed by a short, fat, middle-aged woman, surrounded by a group of children with fiery red hair.

The eldest boy is handsome and looks like he must be an adult; the youngest girl must be only seven or eight years old. She and another slightly older boy are being led by the woman; there is also a pair of twin brothers who look exactly the same. He looked like a troublemaker.

After the family passed through the stone pillars, Mesa didn't delay anymore and pushed his trolley toward the partition wall leading to the platform.

Mesa's pace was neither hasty nor slow, until he was close to the partition wall, he suddenly accelerated and rushed over.

What greeted Mesa was a moment of darkness, and then a platform crowded with passengers appeared in his eyes. A crimson steam locomotive was parked next to the platform.

A sign on the train read: Hogwarts Express, eleven o'clock.

Behind Mesa, what used to be a partition wall is now a wrought iron archway with the words: Platform Nine and Three Quarters.

The smoke of the steam locomotive hovered over the chattering crowd, and cats of various colors walked around under the feet of the people.Amidst the buzzing of the crowd and the noise of dragging heavy luggage, owls also hooted piercingly, answering each other.

There were many people on the platform. Children were greeting their friends, running and playing, and adults were reluctant to leave after saying goodbye.

Mesa walked through the crowd to the back of the car. The first few cars were already full.It wasn't until near the end that Mesa found an empty box.

After carrying his suitcase into the car and placing it in the corner of the compartment, Mesa sat down and waited leisurely for departure.He turned his head away from the crowd of farewells outside the car window. The bustle outside was in sharp contrast to the loneliness in the car.

Even though Mesa was not a real 11-year-old boy, seeing the scene in front of him was still a little emotional.Who doesn’t like to have a harmonious and happy family, and who naturally likes to be alone?

Fortunately, the train will leave soon.

With the sound of the whistle, the train started and gradually left the platform.The scarlet steam locomotive accelerated, and the farewell crowd waved on the platform. Then it turned another corner, and platform nine and three-quarters was left far behind by the locomotive.

The steam locomotive was speeding along, and buildings flashed past the windows.The sadness in Mesa's heart was replaced by excitement. The road ahead may be bumpy and full of thorns, but this is also the joy of life.

At this moment, the sliding door of the box opened, and a man and a woman stood at the door. They seemed to be freshmen.

The boy has a regular appearance, with a nose and eyes, and a short and fat figure. If he is not ugly, he should be quite handsome.

And that girl... Even though Mesa has experienced a lot, she has to say this from the bottom of her heart: This Nier is really cool!

A complete beauty.Her skin is a healthy wheat color, with cascading blond hair, deep and beautiful dark brown eyes, a delicate nose, and neat teeth.Her beauty is really stunning.

"Excuse me..." The boy's voice was thin, far less rough than his appearance.

As if she disliked the boy's procrastination in speaking, the girl said directly: "Hello, can we sit here? The other carriages are full."

Mesa held out his hand for them to sit wherever they wanted.The girl came in and sat down, followed by the short and stocky boy, who looked a little nervous.

"I'm Lilia, Lilia Shafiq." The girl named Lilia said, "This is Shawn Hart."

"Mesa Black," Mesa said, "Hello."

Hearing Mesa's name, Lilia Shafiq was obviously stunned for a moment, and then fell into silence.Sean Hart on the side said hello in a low voice, but he seemed a little afraid of strangers and also stopped talking.

Exchanging names was supposed to be the beginning of a conversation and a good opportunity to make new friends, but the small box was frozen in silence, with only the sound of the steam locomotive running over the track.

The Hogwarts Express was heading north, speeding along fields filled with cattle and sheep.Mesa looked out the window, watching the fields and pastures pass by.

Around 12:30, there was a loud clacking noise in the aisle, and a woman with a smile and dimples pushed open the door of the compartment and asked, "Honey, do you want to buy some food from the car?"

Mesa didn't move, still looking out the window.The chubby Sean Hart stood up under Lilia's force and walked towards the witch selling goods on the cart.

Sean Hart took a handful of silver coins from his pocket, bought a cauldron cake, a licorice wand, and Bibi's flavored beans, and paid the witch seven silver sikols.

Little Fatty placed the cake and the licorice wand in front of Lilia, and he only took Bibi's multi-flavor beans.Then, he looked at Mesa opposite, seemingly hesitant and not sure how to speak.

"It's okay, I'm not hungry," Mesa said, "and I prepared food in advance."

Little Fatty breathed a sigh of relief, and then began to taste his snacks.During the eating process, Shawn Hart's expression kept changing, sometimes very happy, sometimes very bad.

With Bibi’s Multi-flavored Beans, every bite is an adventure.

Lilia Shafiq picked up the cauldron-shaped cake and ate it in small bites.

As she picked up the second piece of cake, she discreetly pushed the snacks on the tray toward Mesa and continued to chew the food in small bites.

"Sean, I suggest you eat some cake." Lilia said, "It's still far away from Hogwarts. We can't get to school until evening, and I don't know when dinner will be."

Sean Hart shook his head and said: "Don't eat, I want to lose weight, I can't get fat anymore."

"Then you might as well stop eating all-flavored beans." Lilia sighed, "Dieting won't help you lose weight. You should exercise more."

The silent box finally started to speak. Lilia Shafiq and Sean Hart started talking about dieting and weight loss, and gradually talked about each other's families and Hogwarts.

From their conversation, Mesa learned that Shafik belonged to a prestigious pure-blood wizard family, and Lilia was the only daughter of the Shafiqs.Although Hart's family is not well-known, his parents are wizards and his family is relatively well off.

Their parents were at Hogwarts at the same time, so because of their parents' relationship, Lilia and Sean have known each other since they were young.

While chatting, Lilia suddenly turned to Mesa, her beautiful dark brown eyes filled with curiosity.

She asked: "Mr. Black, are your parents also wizards?"


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